"River Woman"- Short Story

Morbid short story with mindless violence and an unhappy ending xD enjoy

River Woman
by ~Moquerie

Keiko and Shuji were inseparable as children; growing up in the same small village they spent every day playing together by the river. It was only natural that someday the two of them would fall in love. As they grew older they both went separate ways for there career but they still found time to be together. Keiko took a job making kimonos with one of the village seamstresses, and Shuji always showing an interest in old things, became an archaeologist. The village in which they lived was one of the oldest in all of the surrounding areas, it was said that eerie things happened that could not be explained. The old ways of there village were not as well practiced as they once were, but the evidence of there once overpowering tragedy were still apparent in the eyes of the elderly. Perhaps it was the way that they responded to when you spoke to them, or maybe even the half mad glaze in there eyes. Whatever it was you could tell just by looking at them that they have seen horrible things, and so Shuji pursued a career in archaeology to uncover the truth of the old ways. There were terrible secrets buried in the ruins of the old village; Secrets that no one would speak of, wouldn't even dare to think of. The mystery only made Shuji search further for the truth.

Keiko still went to see Shuji everyday as he worked, bringing him lunch and checking in on him. There families had passed long ago, leaving the two of them behind to depend on each other for support. As the day approached where Shuji's team were scheduled to excavate the old temple, Keiko felt a tremor of fear in her heart. She had a bad feeling as woman often do, and begged him not to leave. But Shuji was desperate in knowing the truth and assured her that he would be ok, he promised to meet her by the river the day of his return, in the spot they had always met in as children. As they said there goodbyes and he turned to leave Keiko froze in place, her eyes wide with fear. For just a second Shuji looked as she had never seen him before, she knew that something bad was going to happen. On the day that Shuji was to return she waited for him until the sun hung low in the sky, she would wait for him all night if she had to. Shuji had never broken a promise that he made to Keiko... Shuji did not return that night, he wouldn't ever return. She waited for him for five days, and on the 5th day an injured man covered in blood made wandered into the village. The man was one of Shuji's team members and it was obvious that something terrible had happened to him. He was the only survivor of the excavation of the village temple. His skin was a sickly pale color and he could not hold a conversation. It was quite obvious that something had driven this man to complete insanity. After the village doctor had patched him up, he sat in his bed mumbling things to himself with a crazed look on his face. Keiko tried to speak to him about what happened, but all he managed to say was "I know the truth! I KNOW THE TRUTH!!", before he burst into a fit of insane uncontrollable laughter. It was said that such laughter could be heard at times when you approached the old shrine in the ruins of the village temple… What could have happened?

Keiko was heartbroken without Shuji; she didn't want to live without him. And so on the 7th day, Keiko wandered into the deepest parts of the old village alone. The buildings were so old that in some places whole houses were warped by the years of falling rain, buildings collapsed into themselves without actually breaking apart. It was the same as if a child had melted a toy with a magnifying glass in the sun. The silence was terrifying and at times maddening, but she just had to see Shuji. So she pushed herself as hard as she could to reach the old village temple, and on the 10th day when she approached the steps, her heart stopped in her chest.
The temple before her was huge and seemingly untouched by time, it was the only building in the village ruins that was still in one peace. At one time this building most certainly could have been called beautiful, but here in the fog with it only seemed dangerous and terrifying. With shaking hands Keiko slowly made her way up the stairs, she was so terrified by the time she got to the top that her once new white dress was ripped and soaked with blood. However, this blood did not come from Keiko; it was blood that soaked the entire stair case leading up to the old temple. It flowed down them like a crimson river, perhaps an omen of what was to come. As she finally reached the top of the stairs, her body wasn't ready for what her heart already knew. The temple was a horrifying mess of blood and gore, not a single member of the archaeologist team was left alive. Something or someone had murdered these poor men in ways that were unspeakable. But where was Shuji? Poor Keiko was already a bloody mess, but she had to know the truth. Among the pile of limbs scattered throughout the temple she searched for some piece that looked familiar, perhaps an arm or a piece of clothing. She had to find Shuji.

As she approached the old shrine by the river in back of the temple, she was not prepared for what she would find. Insane laughter erupted from behind her startling her, but she was not afraid of such laughter in a place like this. What terrified her was the familiarity of the voice.
Shuji stood behind her with a mad look on his face, his shirt was ripped and his hair was matted with blood. Her eyes filled with tears and she rushed to his side with arms open wide, but his outstretched arms didn't meet her in an embrace. As he wrapped his hands around her throat her tears spilled over and she mouthed the words that she would never be able to say "Why... Shu…ji".
Shuji laughed insanely. "I know the truth!" he said, "I know the truth that must never be known, and all those who seek it must die!" Keiko knew right then that Shuji was the one… He searched for the truth and he found it. Insane from what he had discovered, with no one else understanding or even knowing the truth, he murdered his entire team. As Keiko began to slip into the darkness, she didn't hate Shuji for what he had done. She cried not because she was afraid, but because she was happy to see him one last time. She mouthed "I… love… yo-"and then she was gone. As Shuji threw her body into the river something inside of him snapped in realization. His only love was dead by his own hands. Something in the temple was evil, the spirit of it made people crazy; The temple performed horrible rituals disguised as holy ceremonies, unsuspecting travelers were lured to there death. The elderly of the village were the lucky few who lived after being held captive, but they were much too insane from the torture to ever speak of what had actually happened. Realizing what he had done, Shuji followed her into the river and drowned. Although they both shared the same fate, even in death there spirits would never meet for the currents carried there bodies in two different directions.
Several days after Keiko had wandered away into the old village, her body washed up on the shore of the river in the center of town. It is said that to this day if you stand on the bridge and look into the water at just the right time, you will see Keiko. Her lips are blue and her eyes are white with blindness, but her spirit is very much alive. Even in death, she will always be waiting there… for Shuji.